Black Hole
May contain traces of nut
That's not the point, so do electrics. That still lacks anticipation, you don't get to choose what degree of engine braking (unless you use it in manual mode).
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EEPhil
Number 28
Probably wrongly, I used to use the (manual) gears a lot when driving. Changing down when approaching a give way or roundabout (after losing speed) - anticipating being able to drive on but prepared to stop. Useful changing down on a steep downhill in a 30mph area using engine braking rather than the brakes. Ah, I miss driving!
gomezz
Well-Known Member
I got told off during an advanced driving session given by a police trainer for not using engine braking but braking and block changing down when approaching a junction. A little unfair as I used engine braking when in staccato traffic but which had the disadvantage of not alerting the driver behind I was slowing as there were no brake lights. It was/is only the final slow down to a stop that I use block changing typically from 3rd/2nd to neutral/1st.
EEPhil
Number 28
Not sure what you mean by block changing.
When approaching a roundabout I'd let the car decelerate in 4th, apply the brakes a bit and then change down from 4-3 (and possibly 3-2) or even 4-2 depending on my reading of the road.
Given I was recently nearly knocked over on a toucan crossing (at green) when a police car appeared around a blind bend at 50-60mph (in a 30 zone) and shot through red lights at a complex junction without any attempt to check for other traffic and pedestrians (ie. me!) - I wouldn't trust some (maybe most) police drivers. My hearing's reasonable but I didn't hear the siren until the last couple of seconds. I doubt any driver would have heard at all. Just watch any Channel 5 police programme and spot the bad driving by the drivers that probably train advanced drivers. Shockingly bad!
When approaching a roundabout I'd let the car decelerate in 4th, apply the brakes a bit and then change down from 4-3 (and possibly 3-2) or even 4-2 depending on my reading of the road.
Given I was recently nearly knocked over on a toucan crossing (at green) when a police car appeared around a blind bend at 50-60mph (in a 30 zone) and shot through red lights at a complex junction without any attempt to check for other traffic and pedestrians (ie. me!) - I wouldn't trust some (maybe most) police drivers. My hearing's reasonable but I didn't hear the siren until the last couple of seconds. I doubt any driver would have heard at all. Just watch any Channel 5 police programme and spot the bad driving by the drivers that probably train advanced drivers. Shockingly bad!
antipodean
Active Member
I think the one time I watched one of those was when motorway cops stopped someone speeding - and it wasn't just a little bit over the limit, from memory it was approaching ton-up. The speeding driver turned out to be a police driving instructor.
I wonder how much instructing he got to do after that.
Black Hole
May contain traces of nut
Skipping to non-adjacent gears (eg 1 to 3) rather than purely squentially. I do this all the time.
That is the way driving is taught these days: brake without changing gear (clutch when necessary), only select the appropriate gear whan about to pull away. The theory is that brake pads are consumables, gearboxes are not. Using engine braking was appropriate before disc brakes were commonplace, the old drum brakes not being very efficient and (worse) likely to suffer fade.
When going down the gears for deceleration, this should be in conjunction with brakes and not instead of. The "dropping a cog" I was talking about (eg for "enthusiastically" taking bends) is not for deceleration but for the fine feathering available on the throttle to maintain the balance of the vehicle in the bend. Any slowing down will have been on the approach to the bend and not during it.
Yes, your typical copper is not an exemplary driver (and in my opinion neither do they have a full grasp of the law). Recently I was following a marked police car and it went through a red light. I gave it the benefit of the doubt that it might have been in a hurry, but I caught it up again a while later. I considered submitting my dashcam footage to the police portal, but decided against (I might have become a marked man!).
A major irritation is the way EVERYBODY (except me) sit on their footbrakes when stationary, dazzling those behind with their brake lights. Apply the f***ing handbrake you lazy f***ers!!! Even the sodding police. Even when a hill start will be required so they'll have to use the handbrake anyway. Except... modern cars make it awkward to do that (as I discovered in an electric Mokka), and those which have automatic handbrakes seem to leave the brake lights on when the automatic brake is applied, so...
EEPhil
Number 28
Thanks. That's what I used to do. Never needed a new clutch or gearbox.
That annoys me even as a pedestrian (so you can guess how I felt when driving). Have to admit in queues on level ground, when at rest, I used no brakes - except when at back of queue on a motorway. On sloped ground - handbrake!
Do some modern cars require you to step on the brake to start the car? A neighbour's brake lights come on when he starts the car. (Sure I heard mention of this on old Top Gear)
Yes my Toyota Hybrid requires you to step on the brake as part of the process to start the car.
prpr
Well-Known Member
Mine requires you to depress the clutch. And requires you to press the brake pedal to disengage the auto-handbrake.
It was odd to start with, not having a handbrake, but you get used to it. So used to it, that when I had a courtesy car last year (a hybrid, which was a whole different driving style) which did have a handbrake, I consistently forgot to apply it having been so used to the auto-brake.
Wildebeest
Member
Anyone with an automatic box will likely just use the brake when stopped, staying in "D", to prevent creep.
I know VAG cars with stop-start re-start when the clutch is depressed, dunno about other brands or whether the brake is involved at all (I've never had a car that had it).
My auto (DSG) box has very little engine braking which is a pain on hills but putting it in sport mode works very nicely on hills (I'm too lazy to use the flappy paddles).
I like the DSG box - but I do miss the joy of a well executed heel-and-toe downshift coming into a bend! Hey-ho, I'm getting a bit old for those shenanigans anyway :-/
I know VAG cars with stop-start re-start when the clutch is depressed, dunno about other brands or whether the brake is involved at all (I've never had a car that had it).
My auto (DSG) box has very little engine braking which is a pain on hills but putting it in sport mode works very nicely on hills (I'm too lazy to use the flappy paddles).
I like the DSG box - but I do miss the joy of a well executed heel-and-toe downshift coming into a bend! Hey-ho, I'm getting a bit old for those shenanigans anyway :-/
My Toyota Hybrid has a hold system that automatically applies the brakes when stopped. It has to be activated for each journey but then is really useful.
antipodean
Active Member
Every automatic requires this AIUI. haven't found an auto that doesn't, but then my selection of auto vehicles has been limited over the years. Manual cars in USA require you to put your foot on the clutch to start it, legal requirement apparently, apart from it being a good habit anyway.
Black Hole
May contain traces of nut
I tend not to, because I never leave it in gear (except on a severe gradient). If a mechanic leaves it in gear I get a bit of a shock.
I think it's stupid that a vehicle (ie the electric Mokka) requires the brake pedal depressed to "start" it. With an automatic parking brake, it already knows the brakes are on!
EEPhil
Number 28
Admittedly a long time ago (1995), I was surprised when a German friend parked her car on level ground on a German road in 1st gear and without handbrake. Not something I'd do.
How far they slipped from their original purpose.